Unrequited love
by Sweetest Possible Revenge
Summary: A newlymade jonin is sent on her first Sranked mission. It's to capture and bring back Uchiha Itachi to Konohagakure, alive. What other people don't know is that they have some unfinished business. ItachixOC, my first fanfic. Chapter 5. Finally.
1. Chapter 1

**My first fanfic guys, as Sweetest Possible Revenge. Please be nice and don't flame me yet (_if _I get reviews at all; this probably sucks). Anyway, enjoy. (Itachixoc) Oh yeah, and possible OOCness. **

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto, but if I did, I'd probably give it to someone else who can definitely take care of it. But I sure wish I did.

**UNREQUITED LOVE**

(POV)

It would just be a normal call to the Hokage's office, I guessed. Another boring, C-ranked mission or something. Little did I, or anyone else for that matter, know that it would change the whole course of my allegiance to the village forever. Not only that, but the whole course of my life as well.

(Normal POV)

Rika groaned as she pushed open the door to Tsunade-sama's office. As the newest jounin,

she most often got the most boring missions. It was extremely humiliating, but at least she wasn't always on guard duty. _Life sucks,_ she thought.

"What was it you wanted, Tsunade-sama?" she asked, trying to suppress a sigh.

"I'm sending you on an S-ranked mission," was the rather concerned reply. Rika automatically perked up. "Was it my imagination or did you say that you were sending me on an _S-ranked _mission?"

"No, it wasn't," Shizune spoke up from behind her. Rika turned; Shizune was just closing the door of the office. She looked extremely worried.

Your mission is to track down Uchiha Itachi and bring him back to Konohagakure, _alive_."

"Whoah. Suicide mission. Solo one too, if my guess is correct."

"Right on both counts. That's the bog problem. Are you sure you can handle this on your own?"

Rika thought for a moment. A suicide mission. Solo. Uchiha Itachi. Akatsuki. Death. Cool.

"Yeah... But in case I need backup..."

"A team of ANBU will be ready at the slightest notice."

Rika nodded. "Thank you, Tsunade-sama. I'll be leaving as soon as possible."

"All right."

Rika turned to walk out of the office.

"Oh, and Rika?"

"Yes?"

Tsunade was sitting with her back to her, staring out over Konoha. "Good luck."

"Thanks."

Ten hours later

Rika soundlessly walked through the woods; making no noise, hoping the forest played along with her game to pretend she wasn't there. It did. The dark gave her cover, the stars meant only for night. There was no moon. Thank God. She walked with each sense alert, her body slightly tensed. Her ears caught every sound, every slight rustle of the leaves, every snapping twig made by any being. She glanced up at the sky. The sky's hue gave no clue as to the time. It was precisely the same shade of black as the Akatsuki's cloak. She gave an involuntary shiver in the darkness. A sound behind her made her turn. It was right behind. But she couldn't see anyone or anything in the darkness. Nothing. She shrugged and continued on.

Ten minutes later she heard something again. A twig, snapping loudly. A sound that was made by a heavy footfall. It was either a human --- or it wasn't at all. Rika fought back the sudden fear that threatened to overpower her then. No, she told herself, it's not worth to get killed just because you got scared and lost your head completely. Her hand automatically reached for her weapons.

And yet, there was still nothing there.

Rika sighed, wondering if the sudden stress and excitement of her first S-ranked mission was making her crazy in the literal sense of the word.

Continuing on through the night, she slipped soundlessly through the forest as usual. She was undeniably bored, and yet she couldn't suppress the feeling of anxiety that she felt. _Someone's following me._ There was no other conclusion she could come to. Except the possibility of insanity.

And then she heard it again. This time, she was determined to face whoever (or whatever) was following her.

"Who's there?" she called out.

There was no answer. Rika continued to stay still until she started feeling like an idiot. She took a tentative step backward, then another. She was satisfied that whatever had been behind her for the past, well, too many minutes, was gone. She turned around to continue walking. This was turning out to be one hell of a crazy mission.

She took one step forward –

And immediately hit a solid wall of warm skin.

"What the---"

Then there was a very sharp pain on her head, and everything went black.

**Told you guyz it sucked!!! Anyway, if you can stand to review, please do so. Forget all about what I said, flame me if you want. Anyway, if you want this to continue, please review. If you don't want it to continue, please review. If you don't care either way, and only read this because the title looked good, then we share the same feelings. More power to us!! **


	2. Chapter Two: Back to the Beginning

**And here is the update. For those of you, who reviewed, thank you so much!! Sorry it took so long, it was just because of school and requirements. Ü Please tell me if you think the fight scenes are stupid and I'll do my best to improve them. I really do suck at them, seriously. Tips will be gratefully accepted. **

**Disclaimer:** Sadly, I do not own Naruto. I wish I did, so that Itachi could actually be less cryptic and Deidara would be the air-headed blonde I wish he was. And the theme song of _Jaws_ would play whenever Kisame materializes.

**Chapter Two: Back to the Beginning**

Rika's eyes flickered open and she groaned. There was a sharp pain at the back of her head, a pain so sharp she wished that her unconsciousness had gone on a little more. She struggled to sit up, failed twice, and gave up. She surveyed her surroundings from what she could see while lying on the ground. Trees. Forest. Nearby crackling fire. Human shark. Uchiha Itachi.

She blinked again. She was sure her vision was deceiving her. A human shark was not possible, and Uchiha Itachi was still far away in the bowels of the Akatsuki hideout.

And yet there they were. Rika surmised that the human shark was Kisame. Never having seen him before, she naturally had no idea what the hell he looked like.

_I thought he would've looked at least human,_ she thought disparagingly. _Blue skin. Tell me, who has blue skin these days?!?! It's not normal!!! I wonder if he's watched Finding Nemo or Jaws. Probably not._

"So you're awake."

Rika turned her head so fast she cricked her neck. Rubbing it as she successfully sat up, she looked at the speaker.

Itachi.

He was staring at her with those all too familiar red eyes; the eyes she had grown accustomed to seeing ever since Shisui's death. The red eyes she had seen almost right after the massacre of the Uchiha clan.

"Long time, no see, Uchiha," she said coldly. Her blue eyes flashed fire.

Itachi inclined his head in acknowledgement of her comment. Then the shark man spoke. His voice startled her.

"Long time, no see?" he quoted with confusion. "Have the two of you met before?"

"You could say we were childhood friends," Itachi said emotionlessly, staring into the fire.

"Of a sort," he and Rika added in unison. Rika looked at him in surprise. He, forever stoic, showed nothing. Then she was at a loss on what to do. She had Itachi right here. She could knock him out and somehow carry what could possibly seem like 57.1 kilograms of murderer back to Konoha. So why couldn't she move a muscle?!?!

Maybe it was because the lump on her head was still extremely painful, and it somehow affected the messages her brain was sending. And those messages were saying, _get up and go. _But she couldn't. What could these two do? They could murder her. Very easily. Cool.

"What the hell happened?" she asked. As usual, she could barely remember a thing from the moment she had crashed into someone.

"You crashed into me," Itachi said indifferently. "Kisame acted instinctively and knocked you out. For some reason, I couldn't leave you lying there on the ground, even though it was only hours later when there was enough light to see you that I did recognize you."

"Although you didn't tell me," Kisame grumbled. He didn't seem to take well with the fact that his partner kept things from him. Although, knowing Itachi, he should probably have gotten used to it by now. Rika fought the impulse to roll her eyes.

"What were you doing in the forest alone?" Itachi suddenly asked quietly. She swallowed. There was no way she was going to tell him.

"Mission," she replied tersely.

"Ah, yes. So they appreciate you now?"

She bristled at that. It was unfair to remind her that she hadn't been sent on too many missions when she was a genin. And how ignored she had felt then.

"Obviously." She tried to get up. She had no idea how she could capture Itachi now when he was unwittingly in her grasp. She'd have to think of something first.

"Where the fuck are you going, kunoichi?" Kisame suddenly asked.

"Away from you," Rika replied coolly. "And for your information, I have a name like most beings in existence. If you'll excuse me, I have to go."

"No."

"What do you mean, 'no'?"

"No. Negative. We can't let you go."

"Why not?"

"You hold valuable information. Very valuable information."

"What information? I don't hold any--"

Rika stopped. She suddenly remembered.

flashback

"Rika, you are the most trustworthy ninja in Konoha, which is why I'm entrusting you with this." Tsunade-sama handed her a tightly furled scroll. She opened it and realized it held information on the whereabouts of the Akatsuki members. All of them, it seemed. Even Orochimaru. She gulped. Big secret to keep. And she knew she could do it. If only Sakura didn't keep pestering her about Sasuke.

"Rika, I trust you not to divulge that information even if your life is at stake. Whatever you do, do not say anything about that to a single living soul."

"I understand, Tsunade-sama. No one else shall know of this. No one."

end flashback

"Now, do you understand?" Kisame asked, his lips twisting up into a sardonic grin.

"There is no possible way you are getting that information out of me," Rika declared.

"Oh, we don't want that information," Itachi said, looking up and meeting her gaze levelly. "We just want to make sure you don't divulge the whereabouts of our fellows."

"I thought you generally didn't care about each other's welfare," she retorted.

"True, but at this point it is imperative that none of us get caught."

_I don't care, _she thought. _I am going to bring him back to Konoha even if it's the last thing I do._

"I'm off to get more firewood," Kisame said, getting up. He was surprisingly tall (nope, not surprising) and for the first time Rika noticed a sword at his side. The Samehada. He disappeared into the trees.

She saw her chance. And took it. Recklessly. In a flash she was behind Itachi, her hand raised to knock him out.

Suddenly a hand appeared out of nowhere and grasped her wrist in a vice-like grip. She struggled and turned her head to look at her attacker, still trying to remove her wrist from his very, very painful grip. She looked down and saw that Itachi had disappeared.

It was Itachi. Curses.

"What are you doing?" he asked, though the answer was right in front of him.

"Isn't it obvious?" Rika hissed through gritted teeth. "I'm trying to knock you out so that I can take you back to Konoha and finish my mission."

"Oh, so your mission involves me, does it?"

"Unequivocally." This was becoming hard, thanks due to the sudden speeding up of her heart.

Itachi looked down at Rika. She seemed just the same as when they had last met 5 years ago. Same blue-black hair, same ocean-blue eyes, same slender figure, same attitude. Yet she had changed in a subtle way and it was hard to discern what. Maybe it was because she had grown tougher, much less of the old pushover she had once been. She was smarter, more cunning, and as impulsive as always.

She was still the most beautiful girl he'd ever known. And he, strangely, wanted nothing more than to start again where they'd left off. And it was very, very annoying, since she wanted to capture him and bring him, supposedly alive, to Konoha. He let go of her wrist and she rubbed it. Basically, it served her right. Did she really think that she could knock him out so easily? No. No matter how many times she tried, she wouldn't succeed. That thought was in his mind just as Rika whirled around and sent a knee straight into his stomach.

He was caught more or less off guard, something that never happened. Yes, Rika was still full of surprises.

He stumbled backward and crashed into a tree. Darkness almost claimed him and he shook his head vigorously. No, he wasn't about to give her the satisfaction of that. He got up without wobbling and faced her.

"That was unexpected."

"Certainly was." Her eyes flashed and he realized that he'd never found any one else who was as alluring as she unconsciously was at that very moment. He cursed the fire raging through his veins then.

Rika struggled to think of a way she could get out of the situation before Itachi had a chance to use his Mangekyo Sharingan. She definitely did not want to submit herself to whatever torture he had in store for her. She stared at him warily as he got up. She hadn't thought that that would work. Maybe he had been gloating in his very disturbed criminal mind. And then she wondered how she had come to think of him—the one she **ONCE** loved—in such a wry way. Maybe it was because she'd seen the massacre. Or maybe it was because of the way her pulse had reacted when she realized he was touching her again. And she was _not_ going to think about that. She clenched her fist and tensed her body, ready to attack. Her fingers automatically reached for her weapons. She pulled out a kunai and ran at him, ready to plunge it into his heart if necessary.

And then it happened.

He caught her hand and slammed her against the tree, his hand flicking the kunai away as though it was just some dust on his sleeve. He pinned her against the tree trunk, his unfathomable eyes staring straight into her confused and hate-filled ones. He leaned down slowly toward her.

"There is no way you can capture me," he murmured into her ear.

And then his lips touched hers.

**Yeah, the fight scene was stupid. I admit it: I had frequent attack of writer's block while writing this. Especially the fight scene and the dialogue. Anyway, if you think this worth your while and therefore worth continuing, please review. If you think it sucked, please review. If you just read it to pass the time, then we share the same feeling!! More power to us!! ­­ **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guyz! Gosh, it's good to be back. Sorry for the amazingly long time it took to update, but our computer got a virus and it did take a long time to fix it…. And all my files got lost in the process. Charming. And I forgot what the ending of the last chapter was, so I revisited my account… Anyway, here it is, after weeks of serious writer's block and virus-ridden computers. And it sucks, since I'm stuck with the stupid paper clip for an Office Assistant. **

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Naruto. If I did, then the Akatsuki members and all the quiet guys in the Naruto gang would have to watch out. insert maniacal evil laugh here **

**CHAPTER THREE: DECEPTIONS AND COMEBACKS**

Rika felt a thrill of shock go through her entire body the instant she had felt Itachi's lips on hers. For one second—okay, maybe two or three—she allowed herself to relax against his hard and unyielding body. And then, as the kiss deepened, she stiffened and he pulled back. His expression gave nothing away, but there was something buried deep beneath his eyes, something that she could still see, even slightly. Something that she'd seen there once, when she could have bet everything she owned and could borrow on the fact that he loved her.

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" she hissed.

"Doing something I really missed doing," he replied. Rika internally groaned. He was impossible to understand!! Impossible!! If he really missed, well, kissing her, then what the heck did he mean last time when he said he didn't want her anymore?!?!? She stopped trying to figure it out when her head started throbbing. And then, what excellent timing the, well, _guy_ had, Kisame strode around the corner. Thankfully, he didn't _seem_ to have noticed anything different……

"Got enough firewood," he grunted, putting the pile of wood he carried down on the ground. Rika sighed, seemingly in relief, and sat down on the ground beside the flickering and weakening fire. She grabbed a piece of wood and tossed it into the flames. The flames flickered, and then marginally grew. She threw in another and another until the fire was big and warm enough. Kisame had already settled down, but Itachi remained standing, leaning against the tree trunk, annoyingly stoic as always. Rika ignored him effortlessly. She had to think about how the heck she was going to finish her mission, the way she was acting right now. She had two options: knock the two of them senseless, and then transport Itachi to Konoha. Option two: fail miserably and helplessly. She was most definitely not opting for option two. But when could she execute her current plan? When they were asleep? Off guard? Impossible. Akatsuki was NEVER off guard. She'd learned that much from Itachi now.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

She looked up; surprised that Kisame had spoken to her. She smiled slightly.

"Sorry, Kisame, my thoughts are worth more than a penny." (Thank you, SASKK, for that line!!)

She went right back to staring at the fire.

"Don't disturb her, Kisame," Itachi said suddenly. "She's thinking really deeply or secretly for her to give you that answer."

Rika rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out. He would never ever, not in a million years, stop teasing her, would he? And then she heard the most impossible sound in the world: Itachi _chuckled._ That was something that definitely didn't happen everyday, judging by Kisame's very startled expression.

"What are you doing to him?!?!" he demanded of her.

"Dude, don't ask me! I'm not doing anything except breathing, living, and thinking!"

"Stop it, you two. Nobody's doing anything to me," Itachi said, at the same time coming over and sitting down next to her. She felt a very irrational surge of giddiness at his closeness. _Stop this!_ She commanded herself firmly. _You. Do. Not. Feel. Anything. For him. Anymore. Forget it. _

Itachi, however, was thinking about an entirely different thing. How to win her back after the horrible lie he'd told her just before he killed Shisui.

But, frankly, how? When he'd sat down casually next to her, he noticed her lean away infinitesimally. Damn. Knew it. No matter what the fuck happened, he had to try. He wasn't about to let her go, not when Fate offered him a second chance. He was going to try again tonight.

Meanwhile, Rika had already decided that she would somehow sneak a few sleeping pills (she had to remember to thank Tsunade-sama for those again, since she'd thought that Rika hadn't been sleeping well after the massacre of the Uchiha clan and Itachi's departure and treason to Konoha) and then beat Itachi senseless and then transport him to Konoha. Not the best plan, she knew, but it was the best thing she could come up with right now. Now all she had to worry about was _how_ to get them to drink the sleeping pills.

**-------------///----------------------------////---------------------------------------////----------------**

**Sorry for the extremely crappy chapter, guys, but I still have writer's block! Anyway, I just got home!! Yay!! Yeah, like any of you are going to care about that….. Okay, again, I'm really, really, really, really sorry! But the creative juices just won't flow (yuck, na-green ako doon, ah)!! **

**Again, if you liked it, please review!! If you didn't like it, please review!! If you didn't have anything to do and just read this little fanfic of mine to waste some time, then we're the same!! More power to bored people! (MORE POWER TO ALL MY FAVORITES!!) And……**

**I just wanted to share something, maybe to make up for the crappy chapter: **

**A SCENE IN MY CLASSROOM ONCE:**

**SASKK: Yo, E-chan!**

**Sweetest Possible Revenge: Yeah? (Don't comment! Yeah, I am called E-chan!)**

**SASKK: Did you know that---? **

**Sweetest Possible Revenge: No, actually. **

**sudden uproar**

**Animage: No!! Please! Have mercy!!**

**A Classmate Who Does Not Have An Identity on pretends to beat Animage up**

**Animage: NO!! PLEASE!! I'm still a virgin….**

**NOTE: ALL OF US ARE GIRLS!! (Oops…. Damn, SASKK is going to kill me for saying so….) **

**And that is it, although you probably swore never to read this fanfic again…. **


	4. Chapter 4: If I Could Have Anything

**Hi peepz!! Wazzup with you all? Anyway, here's the, uh, fourth chapter (already?!?!?) to Unrequited Love, and I really hope that although only three have reviewed so far (thanks so much to the three of you, by the way! Ü), you guys would continue to like it (sheesh, why the heck do I sound like someone promoting her soap opera?!?!)! So, enough with the worthless babbling and let's get on with the stupid story… But first…**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto, dang it all. But if I did, I'd make Itachi fall in love at least _once, _and Sasori would never have died, yet Tobi would still get worked into the story somehow.

**CHAPTER FOUR: IF I COULD HAVE ANYTHING IN THE WORLD, ANYTHING AT ALL, IT WOULD BE YOU**

_I knew she was up to something. Why else would that certain smile be spreading across her lips? But what was she thinking? I'd have to be on my guard tonight. I'd better warn Kisame too. And we couldn't let her go. She held valuable information, and if she breathed one word to anyone we would be ruined. We'd have to let Leader deal with her… Wait. No. I can't let that happen. He'd torture her to death. And I can't let that happen. For some unfathomable reason, she's the most important person to me now…._

Rika had already planned what she was going to do down to the very last detail. They were going to have to get thirsty or hungry sometime, right? All she had to do was crush the pills to a fine powder and then somehow (okay, maybe not to the very last detail) sprinkle it over their food or drink. Wham! They'd be out like a light after an hour and then she'd transport Itachi back to Konoha. Simple.

And best of all, Lady Luck herself seemed to be on her side.

"That's it! I'm thirsty, I'm hungry, and these fucking bugs are eating me alive!" Kisame burst out suddenly. Rika jumped.

"Then why don't you go get from the stream?" Itachi said. "And by the way, if the insects are eating you alive, then they must really like shark-fin soup."

Kisame gave his partner a dirty look. "Enough with the shark soup cracks," he snapped. "Fine, I'll go get some water."

He got up, slapping some mosquitoes away, and strode off into the trees. For the first time, Rika heard the faint sound of running water. She had been so wrapped up in her thoughts that her mind had tuned out all other sounds. All she had been aware of was her surroundings.

"There's a stream nearby?" she asked in wonder.

Itachi looked at her like she was crazy. "Of course there is. I would've thought that you'd noticed."

She shrugged. "You know me when I start thinking deeply about the meaning of life."

"After all these years, you still do that," he said, shaking his head. Rika was surprised at the allusion to old times. So he still remembered that, did he?

"So you remember that far, do you?"

"For some reason, my memories never fade."

"Yeah, I know."

Itachi scrutinized Rika's expression carefully. It was emotionless, it showed nothing. But he knew better. Rika was a master at poker face. She could hide her true feelings like she didn't have any. Only her eyes gave something away, and even then, all he gleaned from it was just a flicker. All he could tell was that she was plotting something, and that something was most definitely not good. He briefly considered using the Tsukiyomi or the Amaterasu, and banished that thought immediately. The thought of hurting her was terrifying. She'd kill him afterwards. After all, Rika was immune to trauma. He could not be permitted to let down his guard tonight.

Meanwhile, Rika was discreetly crushing the pills in her pocket. They were already a very fine powder when Kisame strode around the corner, carrying a bottle filled with water. He held it out to Rika.

"Want a drink?"

"Uh," Rika hesitated. She was thirsty, but… "How can I be sure that's not your pee?"

"Because it's not yellow?"

"Oh… But still…."

Kisame rolled his eyes. "Rika, I may be sick--"

"Ha! You've finally admitted it! You're sick!"

He rolled his eyes again. "I repeat, I may be sick, but I'm not sick enough to offer a bottle filled with my urine to a girl, or anybody, for that matter."

"Yes, you are." Itachi's quiet voice made Rika jump.

"THAT WAS A LONG TIME AGO, DAMMIT!!!" Kisame almost roared.

"Never mind, I-I'm not thirsty anymore," Rika said hastily. And then she mentally kicked herself. Why did she turn down that chance?!?! Never mind, maybe when they ate.

Ten minutes later

Rika eyed Kisame chewing the fish without any emotion at all. She wondered whether he cared that he could be eating possible kin. And then she wondered whether he really was half-shark or just looked amazingly like one. And then shrugged it off. It had been a stroke of luck when Itachi had told her to go get some food. She had spiked the fish with sleeping pill powder earlier. So relax.

Rika waited tensely as the two Akatsuki members chewed. She had truly lost her appetite, thanks to Kisame and the urine thing. She desperately waited….and waited….and _waited_…._and waited….._

_Sleeping pills still work even though they're crushed, right?!?!_

She had just about lost all hope and was about to simply get up and knock those two bastards senseless when Kisame keeled over within milliseconds of each other. Rika jumped and then relaxed. She waited cautiously for a few minutes in case one of them would suddenly sit up and yell, "Gotcha! Just kidding!" Then she got up and checked Kisame's pulse to make sure. It moved slowly and sluggishly and slowly. So did Itachi's, for that matter, confirming that he was indeed unconscious. So unless they had figured out a way to slow their pulse down, she was safe. She knelt over Itachi's hopefully still alive form and began performing the seals necessary to transport him back to Konoha. She was about to perform the last seal when Itachi disappeared.

"What the f--?!?!"

And then she felt something ice cold press against the side of her neck.

"You really, truly couldn't have believed that you could fool me so easily. I know you far, far too well for that," a soft voice murmured in her ear.

Rika dropped her hands, and in one lightning-swift movement had pulled out a kunai and pressed the tip ever so lightly into the Uchiha prodigy's stomach. But then he was gone, and when she whirled around, he was five feet away, staring at her. And then she remembered something. Mangekyo Sharingan. Avoid eye contact at all costs. She dropped her eyes, raising the kunai, and charged at him, focusing only on her target: his heart. Surprisingly, her didn't move an inch, nor utter a sound when she plunged the kunai into his heart. And then she knew why. Because, as the kunai went home, he disappeared in a puff of smoke. What the fuck?! Kagebunshin?! Shit!! She started shouting.

"Dammit! Itachi, you fucking bastard!! Get your ass over here!! Enough with the game!!"

And in a flash, he was right in front of her, just a few small steps away.

"I'm right here, Rika. Relax, don't get your undies in a twist."

That just got her going more. "Don't think for one minute that any guy can have any effect whatsoever on my undies!! And how, by the way, did we get on the subject of my undies anyway?!?!" she shrieked at him.

Ignoring her question, he smiled slowly. "If that's it, then what did I have an effect on?"

"Other than my upchuck reflex? Absolutely nothing."

His (amazingly freaky) grin widened. "We'll see."

He stepped forward a few paces so that they were pressed together. He slowly placed his fingers on the pulse in her throat. She knew it would be racing; her heart was.

"It does seem that I have an effect on something other than your upchuck reflex," he murmured against her ear, so seductively that it was briefly terrifying…. and then arousing.

Rika swallowed. And then his lips quickly took the place of his fingers, his breath warm against her skin. Her breathing turned to hyperventilation. His lips moved higher, and her breath caught as she felt him kiss slowly up her jaw to her temple. And then his lips, his lips slid across her skin, burning it where they touched, to hers.

Itachi, for one, couldn't believe this was happening. He thought that when he'd touched her, she would've flinched away and immediately attacked him. But she didn't. She'd stayed stock-still when he'd pressed his fingers against her skin. He'd almost groaned out loud right then and there.

And now….

He gently parted her lips and slid his tongue into her mouth. She didn't react, only pressed herself closer to him. He was startled, but he was startled, but he quickly recovered. Slowly, the kiss deepened until it got to the point that neither of them was contented with just kissing.

"What the fucking hell are the two of you doing?!?!?"

It looked like Kisame had chosen that exact moment to wake up.

**------///-------------------------///-----------------------------///-------------------///---**

**Okay, this chapter wasn't really as crappy as the last one…. Anyway… I just graduated!! Ü At long last… all those impossibly painstaking times… And one of our graduation songs was actually meant for a famous local star, but it was offered to us before it would become his carrier single, so… That's it. Ü (PS I graduated march 24) **

**Anyway, if you liked it please review!! If you thought it really sucked and you want to give me a piece of your mind, go ahead and review!! If you realized that I was a psychopath, please review!! If you were utterly bored and just wanted to waste a little time on this fanfic of mine, then we're the same!! More power to us!! (Yeah, I know I've been saying the same thing all over again, don't kill me) **

**On second thought, please do kill me…. **

**Would it be too much to ask if I told you to make it quick and painless?**

**Just kidding!!**


	5. Chapter 5

Okay, after an estimation of about a year or so, I have finally overcome writer's block, watched the Shippuden, and well, fina

**Okay, after an estimation of about a year or so, I have finally overcome writer's block, watched the Shippuden, and well, finally found the guts and time to update. It's pretty lousy and it's quite obvious I haven't written anything in a long time. **

**Chapter Five**

This was going to be awkward. Itachi knew that right off the bat.

He slowly stepped away from Rika, his customary poker face revealing nothing of the consternation and frustration he felt, and faced Kisame.

The Kiri missing-nin's eyes were wide, taking in the scene that he had witnessed. Itachi inwardly winced as it occurred to him that Kisame would probably announce this as soon as they reached headquarters, regardless of the fact that Itachi would probably forbid him to do so.

"Well?" Kisame demanded. Itachi met his partner's stare head on.

"I was teaching the girl a lesson." Albeit the most… _interesting_ lesson she would ever have.

He heard a gasp behind him and guessed that the girl in question was gearing up for a fight. His shoulders tensed slightly as he waited for an attack that did not, for the moment, seem forthcoming. He turned around and saw that her jaw was clenched, her eyes spitting fire, hands behind her back, but there was nothing, other than her expression, to indicate that she was about to attack. He relaxed imperceptibly.

And barely avoided the kunai that was thrown at him.

Instead of hitting its target, the kunai stuck in the trunk of a nearby tree with a dull thud.

Itachi had to commend her speed. He hadn't really known it was coming, until he caught the tiny movement her hand made as she made to throw the kunai at him. He should have suspected it from the start, really, since her hands were behind her back, and that was where her pocket was located. Cursing himself silently at his miscalculation, Itachi continued to stare at Rika, his eyes inscrutable pools of crimson.

Dammit!! He was _fast._

It was infuriating, the way he'd managed to avoid her attack. But despite the irritation, she couldn't suppress a grudging admiration for the Uchiha's reflexes. Annoyance soon won out, however, and she returned the Uchiha's glare, letting her anger show.

Teach her a lesson?! It was ridiculous, if he only wanted to show her that he was in control. Ignoring the small but persistent voice in her head that was saying that he had succeeded beyond all reason if that was indeed his goal, she continued justifying herself, calling Itachi all kinds of insults that she could think of, the kindest being "insufferable dictator." She was definitely going to attack him again.

Itachi had apparently read part of her thoughts, or maybe it was just obvious.

"Try attacking me again, and I assure you that you will not live to see another day," he warned her. The cold indifference in his eyes told her that this was not an empty threat.

Rika fought to swallow, since her throat was suddenly constricted. Her glare intensified, because it appeared that she couldn't speak either because of aforementioned throat constriction.

Itachi turned away then.

Kisame watched the scene with ill-disguised amusement and shock. It was astonishing, to say the very least, to wake up and find Uchiha Itachi, of all the people in the whole wide, wide world, kissing their captive. The infamous clan murderer gave the rather weak explanation that he was teaching the girl a lesson. Kisame suppressed boundless laughter. It was a very seductive and unexpected lesson, then. And after giving that statement, Itachi had barely missed a seemingly unforeseen attack by Rika herself. Kisame admired her speed and stealth. And now the Uchiha was issuing death threats. Kisame was finding it very, very hard to stifle his laughter now. He was aware that this might be something he would never witness again. There was no doubt in his mind that both Itachi and Rika were formulating plans as to how they would kill the other right now.

Kisame met Itachi's eyes then, and the latter scowled when he saw the amusement gleaming in the other's white eyes.

"We have to get going," Itachi told Kisame abruptly. Kisame nodded. They still had three days of hard traveling staring them in the face.

"Get going?" Rika's voice lashed out. "What makes you think I'm going with you?"

Kisame winced, all thoughts of laughter abruptly banished. Now there would definitely be trouble.

She was making this far too hard for them. Itachi turned to face her, not bothering to conceal his aggravation. First she'd tried to assault him, and now she had the audacity to defy him. Honestly, his patience was wearing thin. She was every bit as stubborn as he remembered. That, at least, had not changed.

"You are coming with us, whether you like it or not," he said, the authority in his voice all too clear.

Rika shook her head. "As it happens, I am on as tight a schedule as the two of you. And where it takes me, it doesn't involve you."

Had she turned suicidal?

Itachi reached out and grabbed her wrist, twisting it around with enough force to make her wince. "You are coming with us," he repeated, "whether you like it or not."

"I told you," she said through clenched teeth, "I don't want to."

Yes, she had indeed turned suicidal.

Was there no gallantry left in this Uchiha? _If _there had been any gallantry to start with, that is.

Naturally, she didn't expect them to let her go on her merry way just like that, and she had also reasonably expected that they would use force, but the pain was agonizing. She gritted her teeth and tried not to let the piercing pain show, but it was useless. Itachi twisted her wrist around a few degrees more. A little more and it would break.

"Your stubbornness hasn't changed," he observed casually, as if they were catching up on each other's lives. Searing pain shot up her arm as he tightened his grip. Sadistic bastard.

Apparently she had voiced her thoughts, because then he completely lost patience with her.

"You leave me no choice," he hissed. Rika barely had time to reflect on how clichéd that was before his thumb pressed ruthlessly against the back of her neck and she saw the ground come swirling up to meet her before the darkness claimed her.

Kisame watched their captive go limp and nearly hit the ground before Itachi decided to catch her. He mused over Itachi's earlier statement about Rika's stubbornness not having changed. Kisame wondered if these two had known each other before. A speculative glint came into his eyes as he wondered what kind of relationship they'd had. He didn't often dwell on his partner's past in Konoha, but he couldn't deny that it held a certain twisted fascination for him.

"Have you known each other before?" he couldn't help asking. Itachi hesitated before deciding to answer.

"Yes."

Somehow, Kisame had expected that, but it was still surprising. He knew when to draw the line however, and he stopped asking the personal and went on to the practical.

"So, seeing as you saw fit to knock her out, who's going to carry her?" he asked.

He was secretly sorry for Rika. Kisame knew how it felt like when that particular chakra point was shut down. He also knew that when she woke up she would have the grandfather of all headaches.

Itachi looked at him, and Kisame wondered if he was imagining the look on the Uchiha's face. He actually looked _confused._ Yet another first. Kisame decided to take advantage of his partner's momentary confusion.

"You carry her."

Itachi _blinked_ at him. Kisame wondered once more if his imagination was spinning far out of his control. Or maybe Itachi really had blinked at him. He strongly suspected it was the latter.

"Doing reconnaissance is relatively difficult with an unconscious ninja in my arms," Kisame pointed out. Itachi glanced down at the dead weight in his arms and easily lifted Rika's lifeless form, fitting her to his torso with stoic ease.

Kisame watched, his calm expression belying the slight envy he felt at seeing the Uchiha's near careless grace.

"Let's get going then."

Inevitably, Kisame was right.

Several hours later, Rika awoke with the worst headache she'd ever had, making her head feel like a giant rock had crashed down on it. Her growling stomach did nothing to help alleviate the pain, and Rika had not expected it to. She did, however, begrudge it for adding just one more problem to a day already chock full of the miserable things.

She let out a soft, pathetic groan and rolled over.

She was lying down on a futon in a wonderfully dark room which she was almost positive was in an inn. Trying unsuccessfully to disregard the pounding ache in her head, she gingerly sat up in order to take in more of her surroundings.

The moon's light filtered in softly through the drawn curtains, and there was a basket of fruit on the nearby table. Next to it was a dresser and a closet.

Rika forced herself to stand and wobbled over to the table. She took an apple from the basket and ate it slowly.

Her jaw muscles, not having moved in a while, protested slightly as they stretched and Rika ignored the twinge. It felt like nothing compared to the one that was currently burrowing into her brain. Eventually though, it disappeared and her stomach gratefully welcomed the apple. She soon finished it and laid aside the core. Curiosity as to where she was flared up and she took a few unsteady steps toward the door, her balance improving with each one she took. Rika turned the metal doorknob and stepped out into a long but completely empty hall.

Aware that either of the two Akatsuki she had faced earlier could materialize out of the darkness (screaming "Boo" was an option) at any given moment, Rika ventured cautiously along the corridor. It looked like she was situated on the second level of the inn. Once she got downstairs, she ascertained that it was completely deserted. She couldn't detect any energy hovering around, but that didn't count Itachi and Kisame. Powerful as they were, surely suppressing their chakra was well within their extensive range of abilities.

Rika stepped out of the hotel and lingered at the porch, inhaling the fresh night air. It was invigorating, after being assaulted by a sadistic Uchiha and getting kidnapped by two S-ranked missing-nins.

After a while, foolishly confident that there was no one around, she wandered around the inn's perimeter, happily reveling in the night. Her headache had diminished to a distracting but relatively small twinge at the base of her skull, and her chakra level felt reasonably normal. Her energy was returning, slowly but surely.

Rika ambled past tall bushes, cheerfully disregarding the fact that anything could suddenly jump out of them and attack her. She doubted that it would be an Akatsuki. She just couldn't imagine either of them crouching behind bushes. It defied their pride.

The grounds were large, and she guessed that the inn was located on a well-traveled road.

Just as she turned back toward the inn, however, a shadow materialized in front of her, effectively blocking her path.

Rapidly becoming aware of the huge oversight which she had made, and cursing herself for it, Rika looked up, staring into eyes that betrayed no emotion whatsoever and were all the more creepy for it.

Kisame met her gaze evenly.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Rika could only be grateful that Kisame was not Itachi. Not that he was any less dangerous.

**That was… very, **_**very **_**stilted. Don't you agree?**


End file.
